Friday the 13th fans who want both a digital and physical copy of the 2009 remake will pay extra for the DVD version, but not for Blu-ray.
Warner Home Video will sell a digital version of the movie for $1.99 along with the DVD, while Blu-ray buyers will get the digital copy for free, Video Business reports. The extra charge, plus $28.99 for the DVD, comes within $5 of the Blu-ray and digital combination.
The Blu-ray version will also include several extra perks, such as two featurettes, picture-in-picture trivia and the ability to organize online screenings with other owners of web-enabled Blu-ray players.
This seems like an obvious ploy to draw more consumers to Blu-ray, though Warner has said most users of digital media are Blu-ray owners.
Video Business points out that the number of studios giving away free digital copies with a DVD purchase is on the rise. Notably, 20th Century Fox and Lionsgate both partnered with iTunes to provide a compatible digital copy along with the DVD. If Warner expands the $1.99 digital idea beyond Friday the 13th, it will be among a smaller group charging an optional premium.
This is an important issue, especially as RealNetworks battles Hollywood over its RealDVD program, which rips DVD files to a computer. I'm not a legal expert, but purely from a consumer standpoint, there should be some way for owners of a DVD to view the film as they see fit and make backup copies. If the consumer is suddenly charged extra for that privilege, RealDVD's software suddenly becomes more important and legitimate.
